1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to the field of guitars and guitar picks, and more particularly to a guitar pick holder made of a flexible synthetic layer of material which is sufficiently plasticized such that guitar picks cling to its outer surface when depressed thereagainst.
2. Description of the Problem
A guitar is typically played with a “guitar pick”, which is used to strike or pluck strings of the guitar. Many guitar players carry a number of guitar picks with them as they are relatively small, easily lost, and inexpensive. However, it is often inconvenient to store or retrieve guitar picks. Guitar picks are typically carried in pants pockets and/or within guitar cases and need to be retrieved when the guitar is played. When a guitar is taken out of its guitar case, for example, a guitar pick must be retrieved from some location. Conversely, when a guitar is placed back in its case, the guitar pick must be stored somewhere. When a guitar player is playing and accidentally drops or intentionally tosses away the guitar pick, it is desirable to be able to quickly retrieve another one.
The majority of guitar picks are made from a plastic or synthetic material and provide a desired flexibility and durability. Guitar players have grown accustomed to the “look and feel” of such plastic guitar picks. Although some guitar picks are made entirely of a metal or perhaps metal alloy, such guitar picks are not as popular as plastic guitar picks. In addition, the appearance of guitars and guitar picks are fairly important to guitar players, and therefore it is preferable that any method used to hold or carry guitar picks does not detract from how these items look. Furthermore, guitar picks should be inexpensively made so that they may become commercially available and ubiquitous to a large number of consumers. Promotional and marketing techniques are also important in the industry.
Copending patent applications of the present inventor describe a magnetic solution for holding guitar picks, where a flexible magnet is adhered to a guitar and the guitar picks include a metal material. A flexible magnet “guitar pick holder” which carries such magnetically attractable guitar picks is the primary subject of copending patent applications entitled “Guitar Pick Holder Made Of A Flexible Magnetic Body” having U.S. Ser. No. 10/348,056 and a filing date of Jan. 21, 2003, and “Methods Of Making A Guitar Pick Holder Comprising A Flexible Magnetic Material” having U.S. Ser. No. 10/366,263 and a filing date of Feb. 13, 2003. It is described in the above-mentioned patent applications that the flexible magnet may include a rear static cling vinyl adhering surface for adhering to a glossy surface of a guitar. In copending provisional application entitled “Guitar Pick Holder Made Of A Flexible Magnetic Body Having A Dimensionally-Stable Static Cling Vinyl Adhering Layer”, a laminate of static cling vinyl and polyester is used for the same purpose.
In another copending patent application entitled “Guitar Pick Comprising A Blend Of Plastic And Magnetically Receptive Material” having U.S. Ser. No. 10/365,985 and a filing date of Feb. 13, 2003, a guitar pick is formed from a blend of plastic and metal material to have the look-and-feel of a plastic guitar pick but still be magnetically attractable. In yet another copending patent application entitled “Guitar Pick Stickers Which Impart A Magnetic Attraction To Synthetic Guitar Picks” having U.S. Ser. No. 10/408,270 and a filing date of Apr. 7th, 2003, what is described is a guitar pick sticker which is used to adhere to a surface of a guitar pick to make it magnetically attractable so that it can be used with a magnetic guitar pick holder. Finally, in another copending patent application entitled “Guitar Pick Having A Static Cling Vinyl Adhering Surface” having U.S. Provisional Ser. No. 60/468,461 and a filing date of May 8, 2003, what is described is a guitar pick which has a static cling vinyl adhering surface which provides a “cling” to a glossy surface of a guitar without the need for a separate guitar pick holder.
Even though such guitar pick holding solutions are available, in some cases it may not be preferred to use special guitar picks or to modify off-the-shelf guitar picks. Accordingly, what is needed is a guitar pick holding solution which accommodates these needs.